Not long ago, a college student stated in a focus group that they’d rather fail a class than ask a professor for help. Many students in the group nodded in agreement—and they have plenty of company among students who say they’re reluctant to seek help, often until it’s too late. 

This real-life example surfaced recently when Lumina Foundation and Persistence Plus met with more than 200 advisors, staff, and college administrators worldwide to examine barriers to seeking guidance and behavioral science strategies to nudge struggling students to proactively investigate resources.

Photo: Julian Leshay Guadalupe

With the admission season for next fall all but over, just 42.5 percent of Michigan’s Class of 2024 has completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, down four percentage points from last year. That’s a difference of roughly 4,000 students, students who won’t have access to federal financial aid and to state aid like the Michigan Achievement Scholarship. It likely represents 4,000 students who simply won’t be going to college. 

Both state officials and college admissions officers are hoping there’s still time to reverse the trend.

Last week, in a hearing room on Capitol Hill, 12 teams of community college students anxiously stood next to posters that outlined innovations they’d been working on for months.

The students, along with faculty mentors, were in Washington, D.C., as part of the annual Community College Innovation Challenge. The program, led by the American Association of Community Colleges and the National Science Foundation, encourages student teams to develop innovative, STEM-based solutions for real-world challenges.

The University of California, Los Angeles, has a new chancellor: Julio Frenk, the current president of the University of Miami and a well-known public health researcher. Frenk, a native of Mexico, is the first Latino to lead UCLA.

Frenk will take over in January and succeed Gene Block. His appointment comes as UCLA has been roiled by pro-Palestinian protests this spring.